Click or detent



UNITED STATES PATENT orFlcsf SYLVESTER ALEXANDER WATKINS, OF LONDON, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR T0 THOMA TOWNSEND RUSSELL, OF LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND. 7 z

CLICK .OR nnrnn'r.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SYLVESTER A1.nx- ANDER WATKINS, subject of the Klng of Great Britain, residing at London, in the county of Middlesex and Kingdom of England, have invented a certain new and useful Click or Detent, of which the following is a specification.

' This invention has reference to clicks or detents for engaging the spaces between the teeth of wheels to prevent their recoil. It has been more particularly designed for use in connection with the winding gear of watches and clocks, though it is applicable for other purposes. a

Such clicks or detents have usually been kept to their work by a spring in the case of watches, or sometimes by gravitation in the case of other kinds of mechanism, and the object of the presentinvention is to provide an improved click or detent in which gravitation or the use of a throw-in spring is not relied on to keep it to its work, thus avoiding the disadvantages which accrue in the event of such throw-in spring breaklng or failing to act.

The improved click or detent constituting the present invention comprises a rocking member so shaped with a detent end and a tail end, and pivoted at a suitable point between the two ends, that when the detent end rises from a tooth by the wheel being revolved in one direction, the tail end is brought into such a position relative to the wheel that an on-coming tooth will lift it, and so depress the detent end as to cause it to take hold of the next tooth to prevent backward motion of the wheel.

The invention will be understood from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which Figures 1 and 2 are side elevations of the winding wheel of a watch and its click or detent, Fig. 1 showing the detent in action and Fig. 2 showing the detent rising over the point of a tooth.

Figs. 3 and 4 are similar views showing a slight modification.

Referring first to Figs. 1 and 2, the improved click or detent comprises a two armed member A B so pivoted at C at or near mid-length that it is capable of being rocked or oscillated. One arm A which projects forwardly has a head or nose piece such as, e which engages any of the inter- Application filedoOctober 19, 1920. Serial No. 418,083.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented 31 192i,

dental spaces in the toothed winding wheel D to form a detent to prevent recoil of the said wheel, and the other arm B forms a tail piece which is raised clear of the teeth of the said wheel when the detent is in engagement with a tooth as shown in Fig. 1.

'When'however the wheel is (revolved in the direction of the arrow, and the click or detent arm A of the two armed member rises over a tooth, the tail piece B is thereby rocked toward the wheel D, and the end of the said tail piece enters between two teeth as shown in Fig. 2. Its entry between two teeth is sufficient to insure that an on-coming tooth will lift the tail piece B and so cause the click or detent a to return and take into the next interdental space. One arm or other is therefore always in contact with the wheel, because when the detent arm A rises to slip over a tooth, the other arm is brought against the teeth, so that the arms A, B act alternately, and the action is such that the sllghtest recoil of the wheel A will tend to cause the detent a to penetrate to the full depth of atooth, andhold it down by the pressure which the wheel exerts, thus obviating entirely the necessity of "a throw in spring. The end of the tail piece is rounded or chamfered so that it will readily ride over an on-coming tooth. The-pivotal hole in the two armed member A B which is mounted on the shoulder screw C may be a round hole, or an elongated one; A bank ing pin E may be provided if desired to limit the oscillation of the detent.

The arrangement shown in Figs.- 3 and 4 is similar, the principal modification being that the arm A of the pivoted two armed member has a supplementary head or nose piece a at a short distance to the rear of the main head or detent'a thatis to say nearer the pivot C. The main head or nose piece a forms the click or detent as shown in Fig. 3, and the object of providing the second head or nose piece a is to insure positive action. An on-coming tooth as shown in Fig. 4: lifts the tail piece B and depresses the arm A so that the nose piece a partly penetrates an interdental space, and the slightest recoil of the wheel D brings a tooth against this nose piece a and s0 causes the detent a to penetrate the full depth of a tooth, and be held down therein by the pressure which the recoil of the wheel exerts, as shown in Fig. 3.

tain the end of at least one of said arms in contact with the wheel. a

2. A click or detent comprising a rocking beam, a pivot for said beam, a riding tooth on one side of said pivot at a greater radial distance from said pivot than the distance from the pivot to the wheel, means to pre vent said riding tooth from locking the wheel in either direction of rotation, a feeding tooth 'onthe beam at the opposite side of said pivot and means to maintain at least one of said teeth at any time in contact with the wheel.

3. A click or detentcomprising a rocking V beam,a pivot for said beam, a riding tooth on one side of said pivot-at a greater radial distance from said pivot than the distance from the pivot to the wheel, means to prevent said riding tooth from locking the wheel in either direction of rotation, a feeding tooth on the beam at the opposite side of said pivot and at a greater radial distance from said pivot than the distance of the said pivot from the wheel, and means to maintain at least one of said teeth at any time in contact with the wheel.

4;. A click or detent comprising a rocking beam, a pivot for said beam, a riding tooth on one side of said pivot at a greater radial distance from said pivot than the distance from the pivot to the wheel, means to prevent said riding tooth from locking the wheel in either direction of rotation a feeding tooth on the beam at the opposite side of said pivot, means to maintain at least one of said teeth at any time in contact with the wheel and a stop abutment on said beam at a. greater radial distance from the pivot to the said beam than the distance of the wheel from the said pivot.

5. A click or detent comprising a rocking beam, a pivot for said beam, a riding tooth on one side of said pivot at a greater radial distance from said pivot than the distance from the pivot to the wheel, means to prevent said riding tooth from looking the wheel in either direction of rotation a feeding tooth on the beam at the opposite side of said pivot, means to maintain at least one of said teeth at any one time in contact with the wheel and a stop abutment on said beam engaging in a tooth space of the said wheel and at a greater radial distance from the pivot to the said beam than the distance of the wheel from the said pivot.

6. A click or detent comprising a rocking beam, a. pivot for said beam, a riding tooth on oneside of said pivot at a greater radial from the pivot to the wheel, means toprevent said riding tooth. from locking the wheel in either direction of rotation, a feeding' tooth on the beam at the opposite side of said pivot and a banking pin to maintain at least one of said teeth at any time in contact with the wheel.

7: A click or detent comprising a rocking beam, a pivot for said beam, a riding tooth on one side of said pivot at a greater radial distance from said pivot than the distance from the pivot to the wheel, meansto prevent said riding tooth from entering beyond the pitch circle line of the wheel to be controlled, a feeding tooth on the beam at the opposite side of said pivot and means to maintain at least one of said teeth at, any time in contact with the wheel.

8. A click or detent comprising a rocking member, a pivot for-said member intermediate its ends, a tail tooth at one end, means to restrain the tail tooth to ride on the teeth of the wheel to be controlled only, a detent tooth on the said rocking member on the opposite side of the pivot and means to maintain at least one of said teeth permanently within the area swept out by the teeth of the wheel to be controlled.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name this 6 day of -Oct., 1920, in the presence oftwo subscribing witnesses.

SYLVESTER ALEXANDER WATKINS.

7 Witnesses SYLvIA MORRISON, Josnrn WRIGHT.

distance from said pivot than the distance 

